I went back to the archives for today's cover pic. It was a picture taken at one of the church community storage facilities in Solwezi, Zambia. It showed a pile of 50kg bags filled with shelled maize. I took the picture when Carl and IĀ and our team went to that northern region to start our August 2024 trip off. I just wanted a picture showing the BAGSĀ of SHELLED MAIZE to remind our readers what the harvest fundraiser means to our Zambian brothers and sisters, and to just talk about how the harvest effort impacts the overall feeding program.
But then while I was sitting in church, pictures started coming in from Zambia... Impacting families TODAY because of last year's harvest effort. So IĀ had to switch out the picture. :) THIS is why we are doing what we are doing. This is why we are promoting this HARVEST fundraiser.
First of all, the bags in that first pic were purchased at harvest time in June 2024. Around $140,000 from the 2024 harvest fundraiser was sent over in a couple different waves. That happened to be the year of the drought. Our team in country had to scramble to find that much maize to share with our church communities. We found enough to increase our footprint from 53 church communities to 73 as a result of that harvest effort. And in a country where drought had worsened already difficult living conditions, there were 73 church communities sharing with over 2,200 families each month for twelve months because of that effort.
In 2025, we sent almost the same amount over and because of changes in a handful of variables (including the exchange rate), we were able to purchase nearly 40% more bags and increase our footprint once again from 73 churches to around 120. And increase our impact from 2,200 families a month to our current 3,300 families. The impact in Zambia THISĀ MONTH, demonstrated by the picture IĀ received TODAY, is because of the HARVEST fundraiser from this time last year.
One bit of news is that the exchange rate dipped at the beginning of the year and has not come back to prior levels. It is down around 15% today from where it was in June 2025. Also, we don't yet know what the price to purchase the maize will be, but it could be the government will actually reduce their suggested price due to the change in exchange rate. But that remains to be seen and is totally out of our control.
It may be that we will not be able to purchase as much as we have in prior years, and that may cause us to decrease our monthly impact. Ā But we have around 60 days to do whatever we can to make sure that doesn't happen.
This week we picked up one check for $10,000 and got a commitment for another for $20,000. Just those two checks (which I realize are bigger than many of our readers will be able to contribute) will impact 500 families for twelve months!!
Here is how that math works: historically, when we are done purchasing and have the total cost factored in for the big purchase and the monthly add on to grind the corn, it has cost around $5 per family. When IĀ take that $30,000 and divide by $5 and divide again by twelve months, it works out to 500 families. If I break that into smaller units, for every $3,000 of maize purchased we can impact around 50 families. Isn't that amazing!! Just $300 purchased during this harvest can impact 5 familes monthly for 12 months.
From an efficiency perspective, that lines up well, in my opinion, with our clean water projects, which are now costing a little more than $2,000 with the exchange rate increase and other variables. As I have said now for years, what could IĀ do to make a lasting impact on any ONE American with $2,000? But in Zambia, we can transform an entire community indefinitely by providing them with a source of clean water!!
Back to the harvest, we can impact 50 families monthly for a year with a $3,000 donation. That, to me, is an amazing opportunity!! I know IĀ shouldn't probably use this verse in EVERY update for the next 6 weeks, but can I just cut to I John 3:16-17 in this context?
I John 3:16-18: In this we have known what love is: that that one laid down his soul on our behalf; and we ought to lay down our soul on behalf of our brothers. But should anyone have the means of living in this cosmos, and see his brother in need, and inwardly close himself off from him, in what way does God's love abide in him? Little children, let our love be not in talk or on the tongue, but in action and truth.
If LOVEĀ is our purpose for living, and IĀ happen to believe it is, then what an awesome way to put that LOVEĀ into action is this effort. I have literally seen with my own eyes the needs of our brothers and sisters in Zambia. Love drove us to form Shoulder 2 Shoulder - before we had actually seen the need first hand. Ā We had only heard about it from people who have since become friends and partners in the work, and read about it in places like the Global Hunger Index. Now we've seen it. LOVEĀ is why we are trying to raise as much as we can over the next six weeks or so.
The flip side of that verse that I try not to focus on too much is that John says it in a very negative way. He essentially accuses those who have the "means of living in this cosmos," and don't share with them, of maybe not really knowing God at all. Isn't that what he means when he uses the phrase, "in what way does God's love abide in him?
And then he ends that section with what amounts to one of my favorite DC Talk songs. It's called, "Luv is a verb!" We Americans like to talk a lot about LOVE. John says essentially, "put up or shut up." And that is HARSH!! Please don't hear me saying this to you, reader. I feel it pointed directly at ME!! I am wrestling with the same "first world" problems as you! And IĀ have FEELĀ this deep inside me. Pulling me into action. Even when my GREEDĀ wants to hoard my resources "just in case" this or that happens. I think in my own soul, that is a lack of FAITH. Which is why we often suggest his is sort of a TRADE. Food for faith. I have surplus food - trying not to gain weight with every opportunity to overeat. I have have a deficit of faith. So this trade is VERY good for my soul!
Have you considered your balance sheet? Ā I realize I'm an accountant and not everyone is. Our balance sheet is a fancy accounting term for figuring out if we have any SURPLUS. SURPLUS, loosely defined by me, is the difference between what we HAVE and what we NEED. I would just encourage you to consider your personal situation. Wrestle with the age old question: how much do IĀ really need? If if you find that you have some surplus, consider pouring it into the deficit of our brothers and sisters in Zambia.
